Bill Chappell

Google Files First-Amendment Request With FISA Court

Bill Chappell — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:13:00 +0000

Google has filed a legal motion asserting its "First Amendment right to publish aggregate information about FISA orders," asking the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to remove the gag order that keeps the company from issuing that information. Google and other big U.S.

Perk Backlash: Do Surprise Upgrades Make Us Uneasy?

Bill Chappell — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:34:00 +0000

Whether it's a free upgrade on a hotel room or skipping ahead in the check-in line, many businesses give preferential treatment to some customers, hoping to make them more loyal. The practice often works — but a new study suggests that when we get perks we didn't earn, negative feelings can result.

'Days Of Rambo Are Over': Pentagon Details Women's Move To Combat

Bill Chappell — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:22:00 +0000

Women in America's armed services will have new options for what units they can join in coming years, the Pentagon says. The military said in January that it will end its combat exclusion that set a minimum size for units in which women could be deployed; the limit kept many women away from front-line combat units. The shift means women could join elite forces such as the Army Rangers and Navy SEALs.

Depending on the job, women could begin training to join combat units in the next one to three years, according to several military officers who spoke at a Pentagon briefing Tuesday afternoon.

Obama Would Veto House's Farm Bill, White House Says

Bill Chappell — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 23:21:00 +0000

President Obama will be advised to veto a multi-year farm bill slated to be discussed in the House this week, the White House says. The administration issued a statement on the legislation Monday afternoon, criticizing it for cutting food programs for the poor.

At more than 575 pages, the bipartisan bill was introduced by Reps.

Woman Freed In Indiana Was A Convict On Death Row At 16

Bill Chappell — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 22:15:00 +0000

Paula Cooper, 43, left prison Monday morning, decades after she became America's youngest resident of death row at age 16. She had confessed to the 1985 murder of Bible studies teacher Ruth Pelke, 78, in Gary, Ind.

FTC Can Sue Firms In 'Pay For Delay' Drug Deals, Court Rules

Bill Chappell — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 19:59:00 +0000

When the maker of a brand-name drug pays a maker of generic drugs to not produce a lower-priced version of their product, the Federal Trade Commission can challenge the arrangement on antitrust grounds, the Supreme Court ruled Monday. The ruling may end the era of what regulators call "pay-for-delay" deals.

The justices voted 5-3 to allow a case to go forward in which the FTC is challenging one of many such deals.

Australian General's Frank Talk On Sexual Abuse Wins Fans

Bill Chappell — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 20:27:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaqpoeVgr8U

Lost in 1968 Battle, Marine's Dog Tag Found Again

Bill Chappell — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 23:16:00 +0000

Lanny Martinson was a 23-year-old Marine sergeant in Vietnam when he last held his dog tags. In the 45 years since, he thought they were gone forever, lost in the mad rush to save his life after he and other Marines walked into a minefield.

He'll soon be getting one of those dog tags back, after a network of people worked together to find the tag's owner.

In Gay America, Optimism Abounds As Stigma Persists, Pew Says

Bill Chappell — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 19:05:00 +0000

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans say they feel more accepted in society than they did 10 years ago, and they're overwhelmingly optimistic that the trend will continue. But a sweeping new Pew Research Center survey also finds persistent levels of stigmatization and secrecy in the community.

"The Pew Research Center finds some 90 percent of LGBT people feel more accepted now than a decade ago, and believe that will continue," reports NPR's Jennifer Ludden.

Egyptian Author Sentenced To Prison For Book 'Where Is God?'

Bill Chappell — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 21:46:00 +0000

Egyptian author and human rights activist Karam Saber has been sentenced to five years in prison, after a court found his writings to have insulted religion, reports the Egyptian news website Aswat Masriya.

The complaint against Saber and his book Ayn Allah (Where Is God?) was initially filed in 2011, months after the fall of former president Hosni Mubarak's regime.

Huge System Of Storms Predicted To March East From Midwest

Bill Chappell — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 20:55:00 +0000

The National Weather Service warns of a massive storm system that will make its way eastward from Iowa to Maryland in the next 24 hours, as strong winds, thunderstorms, and hail are predicted to hit areas from the upper Midwest to the Mid-Atlantic beginning Wednesday and continuing Thursday.

The weather service's Storm Prediction Center is predicting "widespread damaging winds and a few strong tornadoes" in parts of the middle Mississippi Valley, the upper Ohio Valley and lower Great Lakes area Wednesday evening.

Egypt Said To Be In Talks With Ethiopia Over Nile Dam Plan

Bill Chappell — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 21:14:00 +0000

Egypt's leaders are negotiating with Ethiopia over a Nile River dam project the Ethiopians have begun building, according to reports. The news comes after a week of forceful talk about the dam project, including one session with Egypt's President Mohamed Morsi in which politicians discussed armed intervention, apparently not aware their words were being broadcast on live television.

"We are in the midst of negotiations," an anonymous Egyptian official tells Agence France-Presse.

Google Asks Permission To Publish Info About FISA Requests

Bill Chappell — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 19:24:00 +0000

As Google and other large tech companies cope with the aftermath of recent reports that the National Security Agency has had broad access to their users' data, the search giant is asking the U.S.

World War II-Era German Bomber Raised Near English Coast

Bill Chappell — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 22:44:00 +0000

A rare Dornier 17, an aluminum-skinned German bomber that flew in the Battle of Britain, has been salvaged from the murky waters of the English Channel. The plane was shot down more than 70 years ago near the coast of Kent.

"The Royal Air Force Museum is pleased to announce the successful lift of the only known example of the Dornier Do17," said the RAF Museum's director general, Peter Dye, Monday.

'I'm Not Satisfied,' New High School Graduate Says

Bill Chappell — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 21:11:00 +0000

When Denver teenager Dajina Bell graduated from high school last week, she celebrated a remarkable academic and personal comeback. Bell's high school years, marked early on by her brother's death and a host of other troubles, ended with her becoming her family's first graduate.

Bell's story got our attention after she appeared in two Colorado Public Radio stories.

BP Ends Oil Spill Cleanup In Gulf, Except For Louisiana

Bill Chappell — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 18:50:00 +0000

BP is ending its cleanup of the massive Deepwater Horizon oil spill in three Gulf Coast states this month, leaving Louisiana as the only state with ongoing cleanup linked to the company's Deepwater Horizon Response effort. Reports of oil sightings in Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida will soon be the U.S.

U.S. Drone Strike Reportedly Kills Seven In Pakistan

Bill Chappell — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 20:19:00 +0000

A U.S. drone aircraft fired two missiles at a compound in a remote area of northwest Pakistan, killing seven people Friday night, according to reports.

Wal-Mart Meeting Spurs Protests Over Low Pay, Safety Issues

Bill Chappell — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 19:23:00 +0000

Retailing giant Wal-Mart Stores' annual shareholders' meeting this week showed signs of the company's recent turbulence, as protesters assembled at corporate headquarters to shout slogans and demands.

Despite a court-issued restraining order, the protesters, including workers who are on strike, decried low wages and called for better safety procedures for supply-chain workers.

Tropical Storm Andrea Makes Landfall In Florida

Bill Chappell — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 22:02:00 +0000

Tropical Storm Andrea has made landfall on Florida's Big Bend area, the National Hurricane Center in Miami reports. As of 5:45 p.m. ET, the center's tracking system placed the storm on the state's Gulf coast, level with Gainesville. Andrea is expected to spread rain and strong winds along the Southeastern coast tonight and Friday.

The first named storm of the new hurricane season, Andrea is moving at 17 miles per hour, with maximum sustained winds of 65 mph.

Gatlin Beats Bolt In 100 Meters For The First Time

Bill Chappell — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 21:10:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9j1H6SEWgw

Baby Moose Benefits From Anglers' Unlikely Catch And Release

Bill Chappell — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 20:12:00 +0000

Dr. Karen Sciascia of Red Hill, Pa., has delivered thousands of babies in her career. But on a vacation to Montana this week, she helped deliver another life from danger, as she and her fishing guide saved a baby moose that was separated from its mother as they crossed a river.

The water in question is the Big Hole River, a scenic spot in southwestern Montana known for its trout fishing.

Andrea, First Named Storm Of 2013 Season, Forms In Gulf

Bill Chappell — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 22:26:00 +0000

Tropical Storm Andrea, the first named storm of the new hurricane season, has formed in the eastern portion of the Gulf of Mexico. Forecasters expect the storm to bring heavy rains to Florida before moving up the East Coast.

The National Hurricane Center announced the development Wednesday afternoon, as it issued a tropical storm warning for Florida's western coast from Boca Grande to the Ochlockonee River.

DEA Arrests Scarsdale Mom In Massive Pot-Growing Scheme

Bill Chappell — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 21:48:00 +0000

Andrea Sanderlin, a mother who drives a Mercedes SUV and lives in a large Scarsdale, N.Y., home, is facing serious drug charges after federal investigators accused her of being the mastermind behind an operation growing nearly 3,000 marijuana plants in a warehouse in Queens.

"The DEA's arrest of Sanderlin — an attractive, divorced mother of two girls (ages 3 and 13) who lives in tony Scarsdale, New York — will likely draw comparisons to the Showtime series Weeds," reports The Smoking Gun, which first re

TSA Says It Won't Relax Carry-On Ban Of Knives, Other Items

Bill Chappell — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 19:51:00 +0000

Small knives, golf clubs, and other items that had been poised to be allowed in air passengers' carry-on luggage will instead remain prohibited, the Transportation Security Administration confirmed Wednesday.

Obama Names Susan Rice As New National Security Adviser

Bill Chappell — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 18:26:00 +0000

President Obama has announced his choice of U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice as the next national security adviser, an appointment that does not require Senate confirmation. Congressional Republicans have sharply criticized Rice for erroneous statements she made after the attacks on a U.S.

Beer Fridge Blamed For Cellphone Network Blackout

Bill Chappell — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 21:50:00 +0000

Faced with reports of a "black spot" that interfered with the mobile network in several neighborhoods, technicians at Australian cellphone provider Telstra say they recently found the source of the problem: a man's beer fridge in his garage.

Ohio State President Will Retire In Wake Of Latest Gaffes

Bill Chappell — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 20:44:00 +0000

Ohio State University president Gordon Gee will retire on July 1, ending his leadership of the school that was recently embarrassed by his verbal miscues.

Former Rep. 'Duke' Cunningham Freed After Bribery Sentence

Bill Chappell — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 18:43:00 +0000

Former California Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham is a free man today, after spending more than seven years in prison on bribery and other charges. A distinguished Vietnam War veteran and former Navy pilot, Cunningham's 15-year career in Congress ended abruptly when he admitting to taking $2.4 million in bribes from defense contractors and evading taxes.

"Spokesman Chris Burke says the 71-year-old was released from home confinement Tuesday," reports ABC 10News of San Diego.

Bradley Manning Court-Martial Begins In WikiLeaks Case

Bill Chappell — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 21:24:00 +0000

Starkly different views of Army Pfc. Bradley Manning were presented Monday, the first day of his court-martial on charges that he aided the enemy when he gave a large batch of classified data to WikiLeaks that was then posted online.

In February, Manning admitted to giving documents that included State Department cables to WikiLeaks because, he said, "I believed that these cables would not damage the United States.

Powerhouse Fire Now 40 Percent Contained, Officials Say

Bill Chappell — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 19:20:00 +0000

Firefighters were able to double containment of the huge Powerhouse wildfire north of Los Angeles to 40 percent Monday, as cooler weather helped them against the blaze that has scorched more than 45 square miles. No deaths have been reported as a result of the fire, which caused some 1,000 homes to be evacuated.

Update at 9 p.m. ET.